WO2017167877A1

WO2017167877A1 - A boat with a mooring system and a method for automatically mooring a boat

Info

Publication number: WO2017167877A1
Application number: PCT/EP2017/057547
Authority: WO
Inventors: Thomas Bangslund
Original assignee: A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S
Priority date: 2016-03-31
Filing date: 2017-03-30
Publication date: 2017-10-05
Also published as: DK201670182A1; DK179138B1

Abstract

A boat with a mooring system. The boat comprises a spreader bar (101) with first and second ends, a crane or robot arm (102) arranged for manipulating said spreader bar, a first mooring line (104a) attached to said first end and connected to a winch (105a), and a second mooring line (105a) attached to said second end and connected to a winch (105b). The boat may comprise a first winch and a second winch, where the first mooring line is connected to the first winch and the second mooring line is connected to the second winch. The first winch may be spaced from the second winch in the longitudinal direction of said boat. The boat may further comprise an electronic control unit configured to operate the crane or robot arm and the first winch and the second winch. There is also provided a method for automatically mooring a boat to a pair of bollards (107a, 107b) on a quay (108) or similar mooring arrangement.

Description

A BOAT WITH A MOORING SYSTEM AND A METHOD FOR AUTOMATICALLY MOORING A BOAT

TECHNICAL FIELD The disclosure relates to a boat with a mooring system, in particular an automatic mooring system, and to a method for automatically mooring a boat, more particularly, the disclosure relates to a remote-controlled boat or autonomously operating, such as e.g. an unmanned boat. The boat can for example be a tugboat.

BACKGROUND

Operational costs for tugboat operations, i.e. vessel assist operations, consist for a major part of expenses to crew. When a tugboat is not in an assist operation, the boat may be moored to a quay by manually securing the boat to mooring bollards using a number of mooring lines, which are first attached to the bollards and then pulled tight. In order to reduce the number of crew members and thereby the expenses for operating the boat, there is a need for an automatic mooring system, which can attach and pull tight the mooring lines in order to secure the boat to the mooring bollards.

SUMMARY

It is an object of the invention to provide a boat with an automatic mooring system, which can handle the mooring lines when mooring the boat, and thereby reduce the manpower needed for mooring a boat.

This object is achieved in accordance with a first aspect by_providing a boat with a mooring system, the boat comprising a spreader bar with first and second ends, a crane or robot arm arranged for manipulating said spreader bar, a first mooring line attached to said first end and connected to a winch, and a second mooring line attached to said second end and connected to a winch.

In a first possible implementation form of the first aspect, the boat comprises a first winch and a second winch, with the first mooring line being connected to the first winch and the second mooring line being connected to the second winch, said first winch preferably being spaced from said second winch in the longitudinal direction of said boat.

In a second possible implementation form of the first aspect, the boat further comprises an electronic control unit configured to operate said crane or robot arm and said first winch and said second winch.

By operating the crane or robot arm and the winches under control of an electronic control unit, the boat can be moored to a pair of bollards without use of manpower.

In a third possible implementation form of the first aspect, the electronic control unit is configured to operate said crane or robot arm to move said spreader bar from a position within the outline of said boat to a position next to said boat, preferably with said spreader bar extending horizontally and parallel with the longitudinal direction of said boat when it is in said position next to said boat.

In a fourth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the electronic control unit is configured to control said first winch and said second winch to loosen said first mooring line and said second mooring line for allowing said crane or robot arm to move said spreader bar from said position within the outline of said boat to said position next to said boat.

In a fifth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the electronic control unit is configured to control said first winch and said second winch to tighten said first and second mooring line after said spreader bar has reached said position next to said boat. In a sixth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the electronic control unit is configured to control said first winch and said second winch to loosen said first and second mooring lines when said spreader bar is in said position next to said boat, and the control unit is configured to thereafter move said spreader bar from said position next to said boat to said position within the outline of said boat.

In a seventh possible implementation form of the first aspect,

the electronic control unit is configured to operate said first winch and said second winch to tighten said first mooring line and said second line when or while said spreader bar returns to said position within the outline of said boat.

In an eight possible implementation form of the first aspect, the crane or robot arm is provided with a grasping tool (gripper) at its free end and the control unit is configured to operate the crane or robot arm to grip the spreader bar when it is in a position within the outline of said boat and to move said spreader bar from said position within the outlet of said boat to a position next to said boat with the spreader bar extending substantially horizontally and parallel with the longitudinal extent of said boat, the last part of the movement preferably being a lowering movement. In a ninth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the crane or robot arm is provided with a grasping tool (gripper) at its free end and the control unit is configured to operate said crane or robot arm to grip said spreader bar when it is in a position next to said boat and to move said spreader bar to a position within the outline of said boat, the first part of the movement preferably being a lifting movement.

In a tenth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the first winch is spaced from the second winch in the longitudinal direction of the boat, and the longitudinal spacing between said first winch and said second winch is substantially equal to the distance between said first end and said second end, said longitudinal spacing preferably being at least half of the distance between said first end and said second end and less than double the distance between said first and end said second end. In an eleventh possible implementation form of the first aspect, the spreader bar is a straight bar, preferably a straight bar with a length that exceeds the typical spacing of mooring bollards.

In a twelfth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the crane or robot arm is configured for rotation about a vertical axis, and the an arm of said crane or said robot arm is configured to have a variable length and the free end of said crane or robot arm can be moved in the vertical direction.

In a thirteenth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the crane or robot arm comprises one or more adjustable arms for manipulating said spreader bar, said crane preferably being a knuckle boom crane. In order to perform mooring of the boat, it may necessary to navigate the boat to a quay area with mooring bollards, and to identify bollards, which can be used for mooring. It is therefore a further object to provide a boat with a location sensing system, which is can be used for locating mooring bollards. This further object is achieved in a fourteenth possible implementation form of the first aspect, on which the boat further comprises a location sensing system configured to sense the location of at least two mooring bollards relative to the location of the boat, and to generate one or more bollard location signals based on the sensed relative location of the bollards, said location sensing system preferably being configured to sense the location of at least two successively arranged mooring bollards relative to the location of the boat, said location sensing system even more preferably comprising a number of optical sensors coupled to an image recognition unit configured to recognize a mooring bollard.

In a fifteenth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the location sensing system is further configured to determine if the distance between two located bollards is less than the distance between said first end and second end, thereby qualifying said two located bollards as a suitable set of mooring bollards.

In an sixteenth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the electronic control unit is configured to control operation of the crane or robot arm to move the spreader bar based at least partly on the generated bollard location signal.

In a seventeenth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the electronic control unit is provided with movement direction instructions for moving the spreader bar to a predetermined position relative to at least two located bollards, the distance between the at least two located bollards preferably being smaller than the distance between said first end and said second end.

In an eighteenth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the boat further comprises a tension sensing system configured to sense the tension of the first and second mooring lines when being wound up on the winch or winches, and to generate tension signals based on the sensed tension of the first and second mooring lines.

When mooring a boat, it is important that the mooring lines are held a certain tension to maintain the boat at its position at the quay, which can be achieved by use of the tension sensing system.

In a nineteenth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the electronic control unit is operably connected to the winch or winches and configured to control operation of the winch or winches to wind up and/or wind out the first and second mooring lines based at least partly on the generated tension signals.

In a twentieth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the electronic control unit is provided with instructions for winding up the first and second mooring lines to a predetermined tension shortly after the spreader bar has been moved to said predetermined position relative to said at least two located bollards. In a twenty-first possible implementation form of the first aspect, the location sensing system is further configured to sense the location of the spreader bar relative to the boat, and to generate one or more spreader bar location signals based on the sensed relative location of the spreader bar.

In a twenty-second possible implementation form of the first aspect, the electronic control unit is provided with movement direction instructions for moving the spreader bar to a predetermined position next to the boat.

In a twenty-third possible implementation form of the first aspect, the electronic control unit is configured to activate the instructions for moving the spreader bar to a predetermined position relative to at least two located bollards upon receipt of a mooring command, and to activate the instructions for moving the spreader bar to a predetermined position relative to the boat upon receipt of an unmooring command.

In a twenty- fourth possible implementation form of the first aspect, the boat comprises one or more electro, hydraulic, and/or electro-hydraulic power units for powering the moving operation of the crane or robot arm and the winding operation of the of first winch and second winch.

The object above is also achieved according to a second aspect by providing a method for automatically mooring a boat to a pair of bollards on a quay or similar mooring arrangement, said method comprising providing said boat with a spreader bar, the first end of said spreader bar being connected to a first mooring line and the second end of said spreader bar being connected to a second mooring line, said first mooring line being connected to a winch on said boat and said second mooring line being connected to a winch on said boat, said method further comprising moving said spreader bar from a position substantially within the outline of said boat to a position next to said boat that is behind said pair of mooring bollards as observed from said boat, and after moving said spreader bar behind said pair of mooring bollards, tightening said first mooring line and said second mooring line by activation of said winch or winches.

In a first possible implementation form of the second aspect, the method further comprises reducing the tension in said first mooring line and said second mooring line by activation of said winch or winches, followed by moving said spreader bar from said position behind said pair of mooring bollards to a position within the outline of said boat, followed by tensioning said first mooring line and said second mooring line by activation of said winch or winches.

The foregoing and other objects are achieved by the features of the independent claims. Further implementation forms are apparent from the dependent claims, the description and the figures. These and other aspects of the invention will be apparent from the embodiments described below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the following detailed portion of the present disclosure, the invention will be explained in more detail with reference to the example embodiments shown in the drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side view of a boat with a mooring system according to an example embodiment;

Fig. 2 is front view of a boat with a mooring system according to an example embodiment; Fig. 3 is a top view of a boat with a mooring system illustrating a first operating step of the mooring system according to an example embodiment;

Fig. 4 is a top view of the boat of Fig. 3 illustrating a second operating step of the mooring system according to an example embodiment; Fig. 5 is a top view of the boat of Fig. 3 illustrating a third operating step of the mooring system according to an example embodiment;

Fig. 6 is a top view of the boat of Fig. 3 illustrating a fourth operating step of the mooring system according to an example embodiment;

Fig. 7 is a top view of the boat of Fig. 3 illustrating a fifth operating step of the mooring system according to an example embodiment; Fig. 8 is a block diagram illustrating elements for controlling and driving the operation of the mooring system of Figs. 3 to7 according to an example embodiment;

Fig. 9 is a block diagram showing different control elements for remotely controlling a boat with a mooring system according to an example embodiment;

Fig. 10 is an overview flow diagram of a mooring process according to an example embodiment;

Fig. 1 1 is an overview flow diagram of an unmooring process according to an example embodiment;

Fig. 12 is a detailed flow diagram of a mooring process according to an example embodiment; and Fig. 13 is a detailed flow diagram of an unmooring process according to an example embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Figs. 1 and 2 are side and front views, respectively, of a boat 100 with a mooring system according to an example embodiment. The boat 100 illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 is a tugboat holding a mooring system for securing the boat 100 to mooring bollards 107 on a quay 108. However, it is also within the scope of the disclosure that the mooring system is provided on other type of boats, ships or vessels, such as pleasure boats, fishing boats, ferries, naval craft or any other suitable vessel. The mooring system comprises a spreader bar 101, a crane or robot arm 102 with a grasping tool (gripper) 103 at its free end for holding and moving the spreader bar 101 , a first mooring line 104a attached to a first end of the spreader bar 101 and further connected to a winch 105a, and a second mooring line 104b attached to a second end of the spreader bar 101 and further connected to a winch 105b. The mooring system may use one single winch (not shown) for both lines 104a, 104b, but it is preferred that the mooring system has two separate winches 105a, 105b (see Fig. 3) and that the first line 104a is connected to the first winch 105a and the second line 104b is connected to the second winch 105b, whereby the winches 105a, 105b can wind up and/or wind out the mooring lines 104a, 104b. The first line 104a may be connected to the winch 105a via a first capstan 106a, and the second line 104b may be connected to the second winch 105b via a second capstan 106b. The winch or winches 104a, 104b may be arranged below deck of the boat 100. In an embodiment, the spreader bar 101 is a straight bar, which preferably has a length that exceeds the typical spacing of mooring bollards 107, although it is understood that the spreader bar does not need to be straight and can have a curved shape. In some embodiments the spreader bar 101 is a rigid element which fixes the relative position of a mounting point of the first mooring line 104a at a first end of the spreader bar and a mounting point of a second mooring line 104b at a second end of the spreader bar 101. In some embodiments the spreader bar 101 can be any suitable means for fixing the relative spatial positions of the ends of the first and second mooring lines 104a, 104b. In some embodiments the first and second mooring lines 104a, 104b are mounted at the opposed first and second end. In other embodiments the first and second mooring lines 104a, 104b are not mounted at the ends of the spreader bar 101 , but rather mounted at positions remote form the ends of the spreader bar 101. For mooring systems with two separate winches 105a, 105b the winches 105a, 105b may be arranged with a spacing in the longitudinal direction of the boat. The longitudinal spacing between the winches 105a, 105b may be substantially equal to the distance between the first and second ends of the spreader bar 101, such as at least half of the distance between the first and second ends and less than double the distance between the first and second ends of the spreader bar 101.

The crane or robot arm 102 is configured for rotation about a vertical axis, that is an upright axis with respect to the boat, and may hold one or more adjustable arms configured to have a variable length in order to manipulate the spreader bar 101. The crane or robot arm 102 may be configured to have its free end to be moved in the vertical direction, in a direction parallel to the vertical axis. According to an embodiment of the mooring system, the crane 102 is a knuckle boom crane. In some embodiments the crane is configured to move in multiple axis. For example the free end of the crane is configured to move in 3 orthogonal axes.

The boat 100 further comprises an electronic control unit 801 (see Fig. 8) configured to operate different parts of the mooring system including the crane or robot arm 102 and the winches 105a, 105b. In order to control the different steps in a mooring operation, the electronic control unit 801 is configured to operate the crane or robot arm 102 with it gripper 103 to grip the spreader bar 101 from a position within the boat 100 and to move the spreader bar 101 from the position within the boat 100 to a position next to the boat 100. The spreader bar 101 should preferably be held in a position extending horizontally and parallel with the longitudinal direction of the boat 100 when it is in the position next to the boat 100. The electronic control unit 801 is also configured to control operation of the winches 105a, 105b to loosen the first and second mooring lines 104a, 104b to allow the crane or robot arm 102 to move the spreader bar 101 from a position within the boat 100 to a position next to the boat 100, and to tighten the first and second mooring lines 104a, 104b when the spreader bar 101 is in the position next to the boat 101. In order to control the different steps in an unmooring operation, the electronic control unit 801 is further configured to control operation of the winches 105a, 105b to loosen the mooring lines 104a, 104b when the spreader bar 101 is in a position next to the boat 101, to control operation of the crane or robot arm 102 with its gripper 103 to grip the spreader bar 101 at the position next to the boat 101 and to lift and move the spreader bar 101 from the position next to the boat 100 to a position within the boat 100, and to control operation of the winches 105a, 105b to tighten the mooring lines 104a, 104b when the spreader bar

101 returns to the position within the boat 100.

Figs. 3 to 7 are top views of the boat 100 with a mooring system and illustrate different steps in manipulating or moving the spreader bar 101 during a mooring operation. Fig. 3 shows the starting position of the mooring operation, in which the boat 100 is held in a position close to a quay 108 with two mooring bollards 107a, 107b placed on the quay 108 with a spacing being smaller than the length of the spreader bar 101. The spreader bar 101 is positioned within the boat 100 and parallel to the longitudinal extension of the boat 100. The boat should be held in a position relative to the mooring bollards 107a, 107b to maintain the first and second ends of the spreader bar 101 in a position reaching outside the inner spacing area of the bollards 107a, 107b.

In a first step of the mooring operation, the crane or robot arm 102 is moved from a resting position, which may be with the arm 102 positioned in the longitudinal direction of the boat 100 as shown in Fig. 1, to an active position as shown in Fig. 3, which active position may be substantially perpendicular to the resting position, in which the arm 102 is above the spreader bar 101, from which position the arm 102 with its gripper 103 is controlled to grip the spreader bar 101. In a second step of the mooring operation, as illustrated in Fig. 4, the crane or robot arm

102 is controlled to lift and move the spreader arm 101 from its rest or start position towards a position approaching the two mooring bollards 107a, 107b. The rest or start position of the spreader bar can be placed "outside" the boat while still protruding less than the rubber rendering of the boat, i.e. resting on studs on the outside of the "bulwark", having the advantage of being more practical as the mooring lines have to pass through the fairlead.

In other words the spreader bar 101 may be stowed in a position where the spreader bar 101 is adjacent to the hull and not on the deck. In a third step of the mooring operation, as illustrated in Fig. 5, the arm 102 is controlled to continue the movement of the spreader arm 101 and to lower the spreader arm 101 to a position behind the two bollards 107a, 107b, with the first and second ends of the spreader bar 101 extending on opposite sides of the first and second bollards 107a, 107b, respectively. During the second and third steps of the mooring operation, the winches 105a, 105b are controlled to loosen the mooring lines 104a, 104b to allow the crane or robot arm 102 to move the spreader bar 101 to the position behind the bollards 107a, 107b. In a fourth step of the mooring operation, as illustrated in Fig. 6, the winches 105a, 105 are controlled to tighten the first and second mooring lines 104a, 104b in order to hold to the spreader bar 101 in tight connection with the bollards 107a, 107b, and thereby secure the boat to the bollards 107a, 107b. It is preferred that the mooring lines 104a, 104b are pulled tight to a predetermined tension to maintain the connection to the bollards 107a, 107b. In a fifth and last step of the mooring operation, as illustrated in Fig. 7, the arm 102 is controlled to move from its active position to its resting position in the longitudinal direction of the boat 100.

Fig. 8 is a block diagram illustrating elements for controlling and driving operations for mooring and unmooring of the boat 100 according to an example embodiment. The operation of the crane or robot arm 102 and the winches 105a, 105b are controlled by the electronic control unit 801, which includes a crane operation module 802, a winch operation module 803, and image recognition module 804, and a navigation module 805. The crane operation module 802 communicates via electric signal lines 807 with a motion compensation platform 806, which is connected to the crane or robot arm 102 and controls the movement operations of the crane or robot arm 102 and the gripper 103 connected to the crane or robot arm 102. The mooring system may also hold one or more optical sensors 808, which may be secured to the crane or robot arm 102, and which optical sensors 808 communicates with the image recognition module 804 via electric signal lines 809. The winch operation module 803 communicates with the one or two winches 105a, 105b via electric signal lines 810. The mooring system may further hold tension sensors 811 for sensing the tension of the mooring lines 104a, 104b. The tension sensors 811 communicates via electric signal lines 812 with the winch operations module 803, which can then control operation of the winches 105a, 105b based at least partly on signals from the tensions sensors 811. A communication device 813 is provided, which device 813 communicates with the control unit 801 via electric signal lines 814. The communication device 813 may receive mooring and unmooring commands from a remote control system in order to activate mooring and unmooring operations, which commands are further communicated to the control unit 801. The communication device 813 may also receive navigation commands used by the navigation module 805 for controlling a nozzle drive 815 to navigate the boat 100. The navigation module 805 communicates with the nozzle drive 815 via electric signal lines 816. An engine or motor 817 is also provided, which engine delivers power to the nozzle drive 815 via a coupling 818, and further delivers power to a hydraulic pump 819 via a coupling 820. The pump 819 drives a number on hydraulic control valves 821 via a hydraulic fluid conduit 822, where the control valves 821 provide hydraulic power to the winches 105a, 105b via one or more hydraulic fluid conduits 823 and further provide hydraulic power to the motion compensation platform 806 via one or more hydraulic fluid conduits 824. The control unit 801 controls operation of the engine 817 via electric signal lines 825 and operation of the hydraulic valves via electric signal lines 826. The optical sensors 808 and the image recognition module 804 constitutes a location sensing system, which may be configured to sense the location of at least two mooring bollards 107a, 107b, such as two successively arranged mooring bollards 107a, 107b, relative to the location of the boat 100, and to generate one or more bollard location signals based on the sensed relative location of the bollards. The location sensing system may also be configured to determine if the distance between two located bollards 107a, 107b is less than the distance between the first and second ends of the spreader bar 101 , and thereby qualifying two located bollards 107a, 107b as a suitable set of mooring bollards 107a, 107b. The bollard location signals may be used by the navigation module 805 to navigate the boat 100 to a mooring position close to the located bollards 107a, 107b. Several different positioning signals may be used in order to navigate the boat 100 to its berthing or mooring position. These positioning signals may include GPS, Object recognition, Beacons and/or Lidar signals. The different positioning signals may be received and used by the navigation module 805 to navigate the boat 100. The berthing or mooring position may be determined by evaluating several input signals, which may have to fulfill a set or number of conditions.

The crane operation module 802 may be configured to control operation of the crane or robot arm 102 to move the spreader bar 101 based at least partly on the generated bollard location signal(s). The control unit 801 or the crane operation module 802 may hold movement direction instructions for controlling movement of the spreader bar 101 to a predetermined position relative to at least two located bollards 107a, 107b, where the distance between the located bollards 107a, 107b is smaller than the distance between the first and second ends of the spreader bar 101.

The tension sensors 81 1 may be configured to sense the tension of the first and second mooring lines 104a, 104b when being wound up on the winch or winches 105a, 105b, and to generate tension signals based on the sensed tension of the first and second mooring lines 104a, 104b. The winch operation module 803 may be configured to control operation of the winch or winches to wind up and/or wind out the first and second mooring lines 104a, 104b based at least partly on the generated tension signals. The control unit 801 or the winch operation module may hold instructions for winding up the first and second mooring lines 104a, 104b to a predetermined tension after or shortly after the spreader bar 101 has been moved to the predetermined position relative to the located bollards 107a, 107b.

The location sensing system may also be configured to sense the location of the spreader bar 101 relative to the boat 100, and to generate one or more spreader bar location signals based on the sensed relative location of the spreader bar 101. The control unit 801 or the crane operation module 802 may hold movement direction instructions for moving the spreader bar 101 to a predetermined position next to the boat 100. The electronic control unit 801 or the crane operation module 802 may be configured to activate the instructions for moving the spreader bar 101 to a predetermined position relative to at least two located bollards 107a, 107b upon receipt of a mooring command, and to activate the instructions for moving the spreader bar 101 to a predetermined position relative to the boat 100 upon receipt of an unmooring command.

The mooring and unmooring commands may be issued from a remote control system and received via the communication device 813. Fig. 9 is a block diagram showing different elements of such a remote control system according to an example embodiment, where a system controller 901 is provided on shore for wirelessly communicating with a remote controller 902, which may be operated by a pilot of the boat 100, and a boat control unit 903, which comprises the control unit 801 with the communication device 813. The remote controller 902 is also in wireless communication with the boat control unit 903, and mooring and unmooring commands may be issued by both the system controller and the remote controller.

The block diagram of Fig. 8 shows an engine/motor 819 for delivering hydraulic power via the pump 819 and the valves 821. However, it is within example embodiments that the boat 100 comprises other power units such as one or more electro, and/or electro-hydraulic power units for powering the moving operation of the crane or robot arm 102 and the winding operation of the of first and second winches 105a, 105b.

Fig. 10 is an overview flow diagram of a mooring process 1000 according to an example embodiment. The mooring process 1000 comprises: receiving a mooring command at the control unit 801, step 1001; locating two mooring bollards by use of the location sensing system, step 1002; bring the boat 100 in a mooring position relative to the located mooring bollards, step 1003; connect the crane or robot arm 102 to the spreader bar 101, step 1004; loosen the mooring lines 104a, 104b, by use of the winches 105a, 105, step 1005; clear the area around the located bollards 107a, 107b, step 106; move the spreader bar 101 from the boat 100 to behind the mooring bollards 107a, 107b by use of the crane or robot arm 102, step 1007; tighten the mooring lines 104a, 104b by use of the winches 105a, 105 and generated tension signals, step 1008; and bring the crane or robot arm 102 in it resting position on the boat 100, step 1009.

Fig. 11 is an overview flow diagram of an unmooring process 1100 according to an example embodiment. The unmooring process 1100 comprises: receiving an unmooring command at the control unit 801 , step 1 101 ; clear the area around the mooring bollards 107a, 107b, step 1 102; connect the crane or robot arm 102 to the spreader bar 101, step 1103; loosen the mooring lines 104a, 104b, by use of the winches 105a, 105, step 1 104; move the spreader bar 101 from the mooring bollards 107a, 107b to a position within the boat 100 by use of the crane or robot arm 102, step 1 105; tighten the mooring lines 104a, 104b by use of the winches 105a, 105 and generated tension signals, step 1 106; and bring the crane or robot arm 102 in it resting position on the boat 100, step 1107.

Fig. 12 is a detailed flow diagram of an embodiment of a mooring process 1200 corresponding to the mooring process 1000 of Fig. 10. The mooring process 1200 comprises: receiving a mooring command at the control unit 801, mooring start, step 1201 ; navigate the boat 100 to the mooring quay area by use of the navigation module 805 and signals from the location sensing system, step 1202; control if suitable mooring bollards 107a, 107b are located by the location sensing system, step 1203; if no, then redirect the boat 100 by use of the navigation module 805 and signals from the location sensing system, step 1204; if yes, then stop the boat, step 1205; control if the boat is in a position for mooring to the located bollards 107a, 107b, by use of signals from the location sensing system, step 1206; if no, then adjust the boat position by use of the navigation module 805 and signals from the location sensing system, step 1207; if yes, then connect the crane or robot arm 102 to the spreader bar 101, step 1208; loosen the mooring lines 104a, 104b, by use of the winches 105a, 105, step 1209; control if the area around the located bollards 107a, 107b is clear based on signals from the location sensing system, step 1210; if no, then clear the area around the located bollards 107a, 107b by issuing an audible clearance signal, which may be issued by a signal horn onboard the boat 100, step 121 1, and wait a predetermined period, step 121 1, before repeating control of bollard area clearance; if yes, then move the spreader bar 101 from the boat 100 to behind the mooring bollards 107a, 107b by use of the crane or robot arm 102, step 1213; control if the spreader bar 101 is in position based on signals from the location sensing system, step 1214; if no, then adjust the spreader bar position based on signals from the location sensing system, step 1215; if yes, then tighten the mooring lines 104a, 104b by use of the winches 105a, 105 and generated tension signals, step 1216; control if the mooring lines 104a, 104b are tighten to the predetermined tension based on the generated tension signals, step 1217; if no, then adjust the tension of the mooring lines 104a, 104b by use of the winches 105a, 105 and generated tension signals, step 1218; if yes, then disconnect the spreader bar 101 from the crane or robot arm 102, step, 1219; and bring the crane or robot arm 102 in its resting position on the boat 100, step 1220; end the mooring process, step 1221.

Fig. 13 is a detailed flow diagram of an embodiment of an unmooring process 1300 corresponding to the unmooring process of Fig. 11. The unmooring process 1300 comprises: receiving an unmooring command at the control unit 801 , unmooring start, step 1301 ; control if the area around the mooring bollards 107a, 107b is clear based on signals from the location sensing system, step 1302; if no, then clear the area around the bollards 107a, 107b by issuing an audible clearance signal, which may be issued by a signal horn onboard the boat 100, step 1303, and wait a predetermined period, step 1304, before repeating control of bollard area clearance; if yes, then then connect the crane or robot arm 102 to the spreader bar 101, step 1305; loosen the mooring lines 104a, 104b, by use of the winches 105 a, 105, step 1306; move the spreader bar 101 from the mooring bollards 107a, 107b to a position within the boat 100 by use of the crane or robot arm 102, step 1307; control if the spreader bar 101 is in position within the boat 100 based on signals from the location sensing system, step 1308; if no, then adjust the spreader bar position based on signals from the location sensing system, step 1309; if yes, then tighten the mooring lines

104a, 104b by use of the winches 105a, 105 and generated tension signals, step 1310; control if the mooring lines are tighten to the predetermined tension based on the generated tension signals, step 1311; if no, then adjust the tension of the mooring lines 104a, 104b by use of the winches 105a, 105 and generated tension signals, step 1312; if yes, then disconnect the spreader bar 101 from the crane or robot arm 102, step, 1313; and bring the crane or robot arm 102 in its resting position on the boat 100, step 1314; end the unmooring process, step 1315.

The invention has been described in conjunction with various embodiments herein. However, other variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art in practicing the claimed invention, from a study of the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite article "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality.

Claims

1. A boat with a mooring system, said boat comprising:

a spreader bar with first and second ends,

a crane or robot arm arranged for manipulating said spreader bar,

a first mooring line attached to said first end and connected to a winch, and a second mooring line attached to said second end and connected to a winch.

2. A boat according to claim 1, comprising a first winch and a second winch, said first mooring line being connected to said first winch and said second mooring line being connected to said second winch, said first winch preferably being spaced from said second winch in the longitudinal direction of said boat.

3. A boat according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising an electronic control unit configured to operate said crane or robot arm and said first winch and said second winch.

4. A boat according to claim 3, wherein said electronic control unit is configured to operate said crane or robot arm to move said spreader bar from a position within the outline of said boat to a position next to said boat, preferably with said spreader bar extending horizontally and parallel with the longitudinal direction of said boat when it is in said position next to said boat.

5. A boat according to claim 4, wherein said electronic control unit is configured to control said first winch and said second winch to loosen said first mooring line and said second mooring line for allowing said crane or robot arm to move said spreader bar from said position within the outline of said boat to said position next to said boat.

6. A boat according to claim 4 or 5, wherein said electronic control unit is configured to control said first winch and said second winch to tighten said first and second mooring line after said spreader bar has reached said position next to said boat.

7. A boat according to claim 5 or 6, wherein said electronic control unit is configured to control said first winch and said second winch to loosen said first and second mooring lines when said spreader bar is in said position next to said boat and said control unit being configured to thereafter move said spreader bar from said position next to said boat to said position within the outline of said boat.

8. A boat according to claim 7, wherein said electronic control unit is configured to operate said first winch and said second winch to tighten said first mooring line and said second line when or while said spreader bar returns to said position within the outline of said boat.

9. A boat according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein said crane or robot arm is provided with a grasping tool at its free end and wherein said control unit is configured to operate said crane or robot arm to grip said spreader bar when it is in a position within the outline of said boat and to move said spreader bar from said position within the outlet of said boat to a position next to said boat with the spreader bar extending substantially horizontally and parallel with the longitudinal extent of said boat, the last part of the movement preferably being a lowering movement.

10. A boat according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein said crane or robot arm is provided with a grasping tool at its free end and wherein said control unit is configured to operate said crane or robot arm to grip said spreader bar when it is in a position next to said boat and to move said spreader bar to a position within the outline of said boat, the first part of the movement preferably being a lifting movement.

11. A boat according to any one of the claims 1 to 10, further comprising a location sensing system configured to

sense the location of at least two mooring bollards relative to the location of the boat, and

generate one or more bollard location signals based on the sensed relative location of the bollards, said location sensing system preferably being configured to sense the location of at least two successively arranged mooring bollards relative to the location of the boat, said location sensing system even more preferably comprising a number of optical sensors coupled to an image recognition unit configured to recognize a mooring bollard.

12. A method for automatically mooring a boat to a pair of bollards on a quay or similar mooring arrangement, said method comprising providing said boat with a spreader bar, the first end of said spreader bar being connected to a first mooring line and the second end of said spreader bar being connected to a second mooring line, said first mooring line being connected to a winch on said boat and said second mooring line being connected to a winch on said boat, said method further comprising moving said spreader bar from a position substantially within the outline of said boat to a position next to said boat that is behind said pair of mooring bollards as observed from said boat, and after moving said spreader bar behind said pair of mooring bollards, tightening said first mooring line and said second mooring line by activation of said winch or winches.

13. A method according to claim 12, further comprising reducing the tension in said first mooring line and said second mooring line by activation of said winch or winches, followed by moving said spreader bar from said position behind said pair of mooring bollards to a position within the outline of said boat, followed by tensioning said first mooring line and said second mooring line by activation of said winch or winches.